To Observe Lent Or Not To Observe Lent?
That is (NOT) the Question
OR
Will We Throw out the Baby with the Bath Water?
“In Christ… are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” (Colossians 2:3)
How blessed is the man who finds wisdom And the man who gains understanding.(Proverbs 3:13)
Lent has been an important tradition practiced by the Church from her earliest years. According to the ancient historical writings of Irenaus of Lyons who lived around c.130-c.200, Lent began as a two or three-day observation with the express purpose of “self-examination and penitence, demonstrated by self-denial, in preparation for Easter.” (Ols
en 2008)[i]
The observance of Lent was basically unheard of in the conservative evangelical churches where I grew up in the South. Even Good Friday was not a prominent event. The only preparations for the Easter holiday, from my recollection, were Easter Egg Hunts, shopping for new Easter dresses and shoes, and a sermon preached on Palm Sunday regarding Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. I grew up hearing preachers talk about Easter as being the most significant holiday of the year, even more important than Christmas (according to some). But I always wondered, “If this is true, why do we not spend a month preparing for Easter, like we do Christmas?” Our family celebration for Easter began with Easter baskets from our parents followed by Sunday School and church dressed in our festive, new Easter dresses (and sometimes even Easter bonnets.) After church we usually went to my grandparent’s house for a special holiday family dinner of ham, potatoes, fresh green beans, warm rolls. Sometimes my mom even baked an Easter bunny cake for dessert. My Grandma always planned an Easter Egg hunt for the kids on Sunday afternoon.
It was not until moving to New Jersey in 1989, that I became aware of the traditional observances in the universal Church, both Catholic and some of the more liturgical Protestant denominations. The crosses draped in purple cloth displayed in front of churches all over the community always caught my attention. People talked about what they were “giving up” for Lent, and some even asked what I was giving up for Lent, for which I had no response. There were food aisles in the grocery store filled with shelves of foods specifically allowed during Lent, including “Fish Friday.” I had no idea what Fish Friday was about. So I began to read and ask questions regarding the meaning of this season, including the observance of Lent. As I learned more about Lent and the other observances of the Easter season, I realized how much more rich Easter might be if one embraced some of the spiritual and religious traditions in preparation for Easter, instead of merely getting ready for Easter Sunday morning.
In recent years, I began a practice of reading in the Gospels during the weeks leading up to Easter (this year I am reading through the book of John). Other years, I have read the accounts of the last days of the life of Christ from each of the gospels to gain a better understanding of Jesus’ experience in His last days on earth prior to the crucifixion. The purpose is to prepare my heart and mind for the celebration of the resurrection on Easter Sunday. Through immersing myself in the narrative of the experiences and words of Jesus that preceded His death on the cross, my heart is more prepared for Easter and I am better able to embrace His great love and sacrifice for me – and rejoice more fully in the hope we have through His resurrection.
I often wonder if the evangelical church has not thrown out the Baby with the bath water in throwing out the practices of Lent and the Holy Week leading up to the Lord’s death, burial, and resurrection?
At the same time, I understand the problems that arise when we begin to honor the traditions of men over the purpose and plan of God. An extreme example of the way that worship for Jesus has turned to traditions of men is the Mardi Gras celebration practiced religiously in New Orleans (and other places) in the weeks preceding Lent. Until my sister moved to New Orleans a few years before Hurricane Katrina, I was completely unaware of the religious connection between Mardi Gras and Lent. It is interesting that this period of celebration begins “on or after the Christian feasts of the Epiphany (Three King’s Day) and culminates on the day before Ash Wednesday”, the final day of Mardi Gras being known as Phat Tuesday. In addition, even the Mardi Gras purple, green, and gold beads thrown from the floats at the many Mardi Gras parades have religious significance. “The Purple, represents justice; the Green symbolizes faith; and the Gold exemplifies power.” (The History Behind Mardi Gras Beads 1994-2016)[ii] Oh, how Satan loves to turn good into evil!
So what about Lent? There is certainly great value in reflecting on the incredible sacrifice of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, remembering the words and embracing the attitude of Christ described by the apostle Paul in Philippians 2:5-8.
Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
In giving up something of pleasure or in sacrificing a comfort for a time, to reflect on cost of our salvation, we become much more thankful for what Christ did for our salvation. However, we must also remember that self-sacrifice for a season is not what is required by Christ for the true follower, the obedient disciple. He requires much more than self-sacrifice. He requires death to self – every day of our lives. Jesus says to everyone in Luke 9:23,
“If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.”
Giving up one thing we like for the short period of Lent is not enough. Living for Jesus is giving up everything, every day of our lives, to follow Him.
If Lent is to be a good thing in the life of a Christ-follower, it must be that that we recognize Lent as a symbol of our lives every day as true followers of Jesus. The observance of Lent is a good way to remind ourselves of Jesus’ sacrifice for us and to teach us to die daily to our own desires, but it is not a substitute for the life of a true disciple. Lent can help us to embrace the Easter season or it can become merely a tradition of man that causes us to think of ourselves as more spiritual than we are. Some may see the observance of Lent as a way to do something good that causes God to accept and love them more, while the reality is that God cannot love us more. It is not through good works which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us. We must be careful to guard the truth of the season when we celebrate the life, death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord. We must not get sidetracked by the traditions and practices of the church or the society, making these symbols reality when they are mere images of what it means to be true Biblical Christ-follower. We may choose to practice Lent or we may not practice Lent. That is not the question. Paul writes in Colossians,
“Therefore no one is to act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day— things which are a mere shadow of what is to come.” (2:16-17)
“If you have died with Christ to the elementary principles of the world, why, as if you were living in the world, do you submit yourself to decrees, such as, “Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!” (which all refer to things destined to perish with use)—in accordance with the commandments and teachings of men? These are matters which have, to be sure, the appearance of wisdom in self-made religion and self-abasement and severe treatment of the body, but are of no value against fleshly indulgence.” (2:20-23)
So what is the question?
In our daily lives as followers of Jesus, what is the true motive of our actions? What is the substance and meaning of our behaviors, practices, traditions, and attitudes? According to Scripture, whatever we do is to be a picture of our reality – in other words, we need to keep it real! No pretense! Paul admonishes the church at Corinth, “Let us celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.” (I Corinthians 5:8) Whatever we eat or drink, whenever we observe a Sabbath, a holiday or attend a church service or event, the outwards actions of our lives are mere shadows, just images of what is to come. Our lives are to reflect Jesus, because the “substance belongs to Christ.” (Colossians 2:17b).
For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form, and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority… having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. When you were dead in your transgressions…He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. (Colossians 2:9-14)
My prayer for you this Easter Season is that “your hearts may be encouraged, having been knit together in love, and attaining to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God’s mystery, that is, Christ Himself, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” (Colossians 2:2-3)
Whether one observes Lent, Ash Wednesday, or Good Friday OR whether you don’t, Jesus is all that matters. So don’t throw out the baby with the bath water. Keep the Baby – the One who came to be the Savior of the World, Who Lived a life of complete obedience to His Father, a life of humility and sacrifice for us, who died the death of a criminal, who was buried in a borrowed tomb, and who rose again to give us eternal life. Jesus is the one who is wears the royal purple robe of Justice. He is the One who give us Faith that is necessary to please God and through faith, eternal life (remember the Green beads symbolizing faith). And Jesus has been given ALL power and authority (The gold beads symbolize his power!), and He holds the keys to death and hell. Jesus is and should be the focus of every event, every observance, every holiday on the historical church calendar and in the lives of every follower of Jesus.
The question is this: Is He the focus of your celebration and your sacrifice?
Because, this is what the Easter season is all about!
[i] Olsen, Ted. 2008. “The Beginning of Lent.” www.christianitytoday.com. August 8. Accessed March 14, 2016. http://www.christianitytoday.com/history/2008/august/beginning-of-lent.html.
[ii] 1994-2016. “The History Behind Mardi Gras Beads.” Mardi Gras Day. Accessed March 14, 2016. http://www.mardigrasday.com/mardi-gras-info/the-history-behind-mardi-gras-beads/.